1998 WPA World 9-Ball Championship

Results

Place	Player	Prize
1	Kunihiko Takahashi
2	Johnny Archer

Recap

Published April 13, 2026

The 1998 WPA World Nine-Ball Championship took place in Taipei City, Taiwan from November 11-15, 1998. Japan's Kunihiko Takahashi, the 29-year-old nicknamed The Sniper, won the tournament by defeating 64 of the world's best players to claim his first world title.

Takahashi's victory came against defending champion Johnny Archer of the United States in the final. In a race-to-13 match, Takahashi defeated Archer 13-3. Archer had won the championship the previous year and was widely recognized as one of the most consistent players in the game.

In the quarterfinals, Takahashi defeated Sweden's Niclas Bergendorff 13-11 in his closest match of the tournament. In the semifinals, Takahashi defeated Japan's Akikumo Toshikawa 13-2. Archer reached the final by defeating Jon Kucharo 13-3 in his semifinal.

The victory was significant for Japanese pool. Takahashi became only the second World Nine-Ball Champion from Japan, following Takeshi Okumura's championship in 1994. Takahashi turned professional in 1996, two years before winning the world championship. Later, he won the 1999 ESPN Ultimate Shootout title, which came with a $40,000 prize.

The 1998 championship marked the end of Archer's reign as world champion. Takahashi's win reflected the growing strength of Asian players in professional pool.

Sources: 1998 WPA World Nine-ball Championship – Wikipedia, Kunihiko Takahashi – Wikipedia, List of WPA World Nine-ball champions – Wikipedia

This recap was compiled from public tournament records and tournament organizer communications. ForceFollow is not affiliated with the tournament organizer.